what's in a name

william dead for  
so long , to resurrect him  
now, a  child's ghost  
of myself peeking out each time  
someone said my name  
 
i was born with his name  
the new family thought it best  
to start again, like claiming ownership  
of someone's former dog  
by changing it's name  
lawyers petitioned and  
judges approved, new dog tags  
were signed, william snuffed out  
the utterance james was born  
 
that i should lay claim  
to it as my own, i never did  
nor never denied it  
semaj a reverse play of it's order  
it is no more or less different  
a term than if someone called me  
stone or tree  
 
 
a blessing really  
to be not a name  
but a fever  
of affection  
for the soul  
of another